Atrial Fibrillation (AF) is a commonly occurring cardiac arrhythmia. In a normal heart rhythm, the impulse generated by the sinoatrial node spreads through the heart and causes contraction of the heart muscle and pumping of blood. In AF, the regular electrical impulses of the sinoatrial node are replaced by disorganized, rapid electrical impulses which result in irregular heartbeats. AF may result in symptoms of palpitations, fainting, chest pain, or heart failure, and is a leading cause of thromboembolism and stroke.
Although AF is a commonly occurring cardiac arrhythmia, the treatment of AF is difficult because there is no precise qualitative and quantitative methodology for analyzing AF in a patient. Typically, catheter ablation is used to terminate an AF arrhythmia. In catheter ablation procedures, doctors attempt to identify locations of abnormal electrical activity in the heart. The tip of a catheter is then used to apply energy (either radiofrequency to heat or liquid nitrogen to freeze) at these locations. This destroys, or ablates, the tissue at these locations and interrupts the triggers for the heart arrhythmia. However, such catheter ablation procedures depend on the judgment of doctors and may not be precise or predictable, since there is no accurate way to determine the best location, time, and energy for ablation.